Recreational marijuana officially goes on sale in San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Recreational marijuana dispensaries are now selling pot to anyone 21 years or older in San Francisco. The first stores opened their doors at 9:00 a.m.

On Friday, seven dispensaries were given the go-ahead to sell recreational pot.

Sales became legal on January 1st.

But San Francisco had to wait until now because the city didn't iron out its regulations in time.

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"My whole life, people I know, people in my life have been fighting for this day to come," said Dominic Rea.

The Apothecarium in the Castro District didn't open its doors until 9 a.m., but Rea wanted to be the first in line.

Before Saturday, you needed to have a medicinal marijuana card to make a purchase in the city.

"We've been around for about seven years, so this is something we've been anticipating for a long, long time, and it's long overdue," The Apothecarium co-founder Ryan Hudson said.

Only a handful of dispensaries were given the okay on Friday to start selling recreational weed this weekend. Unlike other places that began sales on January first ... San Francisco businesses had to wait for the city to iron out its regulations.

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"We had a lot of issues we had to work through. There were people that frankly didn't understand cannabis and didn't understand how it was already here," San Francisco Supervisor Jeff Sheehy said.

Business was good over at Harvest in the Richmond District.

"We've definitely seen a surge in activity, probably double or triple what we'd normally due on a given day," said Harvest owner Marty Higgins.

With customers browsing store shelves and holding shopping baskets, the experience was more like being at a local grocery store.

Once you make your purchase, your items are placed inside a bag that is not see-through, and as part of regulations, it's also child proof.

You have to be at least 21 years old to buy no more than an ounce of cannabis. That's more than enough for some looking to get a good high.

"That's what I'm looking forward to, some edibles and going to see a movie," San Francisco resident Wesley Hattan said.

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